2020 was largely defined by the tragedy, with a pandemic that resulted in the deaths of millions around the world.
But the year was also filled with uplifting and even historic moments.
Here are six hopeful memories that made 2020 a little less terrible.
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The year 2020, for many, was defined by tragedy and turmoil – a global pandemic, countless deaths and tragedies and an eventful presidential election in the United States, to name a few. However, the year marked by mishaps also brought some achievements and inspiring moments.
Here are five of the most historic and uplifting events of 2020:
1. SpaceX launched two NASA astronauts into space
Elon Musk celebrates after the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and the Crew Dragon spacecraft on NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 mission to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center International Space Station on May 30, 2020.
REUTERS / Steve Nesius
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk made history in May, putting two people into orbit for the first time since the private company’s founding in 2002.
NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley became the first Americans to take off from U.S. soil on an American rocket for the first time since July 2011.
“It is an absolute honor to be part of this huge effort to put the United States back in the launch business,” said Hurley minutes before takeoff.
2. COVID-19 vaccines were produced in record time
Given Ruvic / Reuters
The COVID-19 pandemic has completely changed the way people around the world live their daily lives. It infected almost 80 million people and killed more than 1.7 million people worldwide. The ferocity of the virus is partly what motivated the worldwide effort to accelerate the development of a vaccine.
A Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is already being administered in the United States and other parts of the world, and Moderna received authorization for emergency use from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on December 18. It usually takes many years to research, develop, manufacture, approve and distribute a safe and effective vaccine.
3. Vaccine implementation
JACOB KING / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
Although creating a new vaccine in record time was a feat, this year saw people in several countries start receiving vaccines against COVID-19, opening the first steps towards a return to some normality.
The United Kingdom became the first western country to start vaccinating the elderly after the country’s health authorities approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on December 2. Margaret Keenan, a 90-year-old grandmother, became the first person in the West to receive a COVID-19 vaccine outside of clinical trials.
A few weeks after the start of vaccination efforts in the United Kingdom, the United States also approved the vaccine developed by Pfizer and started inoculating healthcare professionals. In Indiana, health workers were so eager to be vaccinated that they broke the state’s registration system even before vaccine shipments arrived in the state.
4. The “most democratic” US election in American history
President-elect Joe Biden and vice-president-elect Kamala Harris in Wilmington, Delaware, on November 7, 2020. They claimed victory when President Donald Trump refused to grant.
JIM WATSON / AFP via Getty Images
The 2020 electoral cycle in the United States was fraught with division and disinformation from President Donald Trump and his allies, along with baseless allegations of fraud and post-election lawsuits that attempt to nullify countless votes. Despite the turmoil, federal, state and local election officials considered it the “most democratic” election in the history of the United States.
President-elect Joe Biden and vice-president-elect Kamala Harris won the election with 306 electoral votes. This race also saw record voter turnout, with the help of mail order expansions in several states.
There was a record 101 million pre-election ballots, with an estimated 159 million votes in total in the 2020 election, the most the United States has seen in more than 100 years.
Biden also won the majority of the votes of any candidate in history, with more than 80 million.
5. Kamala Harris makes history as the first female, black and Asian American elected vice president
The Americans celebrated Harris’s nomination for vice president and his subsequent victory.
Harris, who graduated from Howard University, is also the first alumni of a historically black college or university to attend an important party.
“Bringing black and South Asian representation to the table, your experiences as a woman of color and the daughter of immigrants will offer a point of view at the White House like this country has never seen,” said Christian Nunes, the president of the National Organization for Women, said Insider.
6. “Parasite” won the Oscar for best film
The ram scene in “Parasite”.
Neon / CJ Entertainment
The film “Parasite” made history in February by becoming the first non-English film to win the best Oscar film.
Parasite also won the awards for best director and best original script, best international feature film and was nominated for best production design and best film editing.
The nomination was one of many this year that highlighted the achievements of great diversity in Hollywood. In September, actress Zendaya became the youngest lead drama actress to win an Emmy for her role in HBO’s “Euphoria”.
Actress and musician Akwafina also became the first person of Asian descent to win the Golden Globe for leading actress for her role in “The Farewell”.
